Türkiye, Iraq reach draft agreement on sharing water as drought worsens

ANKARA

Top diplomats from Türkiye and Iraq reached a tentative agreement last week on sharing water and managing dwindling flows through the Tigris and Euphrates rivers as the region faces worsening drought conditions.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein told a joint news conference that the draft “framework” agreement on water management between the two neighbors would soon be signed in Iraq.

Iraqi officials have long complained that dams built by Türkiye are reducing Iraq’s water supply. The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, which provide most of Iraq’s fresh water, originate in Türkiye. Experts fear that climate change could exacerbate water shortages in Iraq.

“We know and understand the difficulties you are experiencing. We are brothers and sisters in this region,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said, insisting that Türkiye was actively engaged in helping Iraq address the water situation.

“The waters of the Euphrates and Tigris [rivers] belong to all of us.”

Fidan said he hoped water rehabilitation projects would be swiftly implemented. “This water shortage will continue to be a problem not only today but also for years to come,” he said.

The two countries recently have improved relations that were often strained over Turkish military incursions into northern Iraq for operations against the PKK terrorist organization.

On Oct. 9, Türkiye lifted its flight ban on an airport in Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdish region, a restriction originally imposed in 2023 due to concerns over PKK activity in the area.

The decision to resume flights to Sulaymaniyah International Airport was announced by the office of Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Governent Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, following a meeting in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Last month, Iraq resumed exporting oil from the semiautonomous Kurdish region through Türkiye Ceyhan port after exports had been halted for more than two years.